I got a nasty letter this week.

It was from a pastor I’d never met who viewed something I’d done, and vehemently criticized it.

She did not do so with malice or nastiness, perhaps it would have been easier to write-off if she had. But her points were well made, her reasoning logical, and it hurt.

So I had a choice to make: how would I allow this to affect me? How much weight would I give it? Would I let this play over and over in my mind until it put me in a bad mood, or even worse, dictated my ideas about myself?

Has this ever happened to you?

This Sunday we hear a familiar Gospel story from early on in Jesus’ ministry, in which He goes to the Temple, reads the Scriptures, and says, ‘Ya, that’s me – I’m that guy.’

While Jesus is certainly aware of the expectations of his parents, the views of his siblings, and the opinions of his friends, Jesus lets the Scriptures define Him.

Jesus doesn’t let the doubts and lies have precedence over God’s opinion.

This may be one of our biggest needs. You and I need God’s strength to go deaf to the voices that compromise and, instead, listen more closely to the voice of Truth that tells us who we really are.

How can we listen less to the lies and more to the truth?

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Reading

The Guidebook –NRSV version of the Bible

Through the Waters – Taylor Branch

How to Stop Worrying and Start Living – Dale Carnegie